Udupi: The Pain And Injustice That Hindus Suffered For Long Has Now Exploded, Says Pejawara Mutt Seer In Response To Appeal By Muslim And Christian Traders

The head of the Pejawara mutt in Udupi HH Shri Vishwaprasanna Teertha Swamiji, has responded to the appeal by Christian and Muslim traders who sought his intervention in the 'temple fair trader boycott' issue, saying 'one group (Hindus) alone can't bring about harmony'.

Muslim and Christian traders had met Swamiji on Wednesday (30 March), seeking his intervention so that Muslim traders could participate and set shop in temple fair fests as they have been doing in the past.

Under the banner of 'Udupi Jilla Sauhardha Samiti', the delegation of community leaders made a case saying the 'poor traders' who made a living by selling items at shops set up at these fairs were facing a lot of problems.

Swamiji accepted their appeal but responded saying, 'while peace and harmony are essential, it can't be a one-sided affair'.

"Relentless injustice results in pain and disappointment that tends to explode someday. The Hindu community is dejected with all the pain it has suffered and has today exploded," said Swamiji, speaking to media persons after the meeting with the Samiti.

"The Hindu community is in great pain owing to many untoward incidents. This issue can't be resolved through discussions between some religious leaders; it needs to be resolved at the ground level," he said.

"We need to sit at a common forum and discuss the cause of these developments. Only if there are no incidents that hurt the Hindu community can one expect harmony to grow," he added.

"All the cows from a widow's shed get stolen, which has got her to the streets. Many such incidents have taken place that has taken the pain to the limit. We too have suffered such pains, so if we just say 'let's all live in harmony', it won't happen. For peace and co-existece to prevail in a society, there need not be any intervention," said Swamiji.

"Those responsible for the injustice need to resolve the issue; let that community punish their members who have erred. Let that community protest against those mistakes. The mistake of one is what gets attached to the entire community. So if the community doesn't stand by its members who err, the Hindus won't be hurt," said Swamiji in Udupi, which has been the epicentre of both the hijab and the temple fair trade rule issues.

Karnataka's temples have been the centre of a communal controversy for the last 10 days after the Marigudi temple in Kaup in Udupi issued a regulation that only Hindu traders and shopkeepers would be permitted to set shop around the temple premise during its annual fair.

Hindu organisations had responded to the response to the 'hijab verdict' by Muslim community that called for a Karnataka bandh, saying those that do not respect the law wouldn't be allowed to do business in the precincts of a temple and approached temple management seeking a prohibition on non-Hindu traders at temple fairs.

This soon spread to other parts of the state, with many temples calling for similar regulations that permit only Hindu traders to do business during the annual fairs on temple lands, with the ruling party leaders defending the action saying it was legally permissible.